I originally picked Lex as my name because I thought it meant "reader". A visit to an online Latin-English dictionary informs me that "lector" is the word for "reader", while "lex" means "law". So, my name was due to ignorance on my part. Oops.<br />

I, Lex Llama, super genius, will one day rule this planet! And then you'll rue the day you messed with me, you damned dirty apes!

My name is an erroneous superlative of bonus (good) or bene (well). My friend suggested it when I was making a new screenname for AIM, but I was a beginner and didn't know how wrong it was. I can't very well change it now. At least it's better than my really old one "CaedaboTe".

I've had this nick online for..... 6 years? more than that I think. <br /><br />It came from having a particularly clueless week, which happened to coincide with the week I was getting tired of my old nick. I've kept it ever since, because it fits me. ;)

Mine's easy. I picked my first name, if for no other reason than that it's unusual (I've met Kessa, Kiesa and Keesha, but never another Keesa), it's fun to say, and-I can remember it. Supposedly it means "Loved One," I think from some French/Canadian Indian slang word that Mamma picked up somewhere, some time, long ago. I'm not really sure.

Mine is a bit of shift from what my brother used to call me in a playful manner. My name's Myungsunn(an american listened carefully how my name was pronounced and told me it could be transcribed as mn-young-son) and my brother used to call me mengshey. And I borrowed the chinese pronunciation of myung later. I'd think about adding a bit of greek touch and turn in into 'minxeus([face=SPIonic][size=18=12]migceuj[/face][/size]).'

Mariek, you disappoint me. I thought it was an interesting E. European version of Maria (Czech or Polish maybe).<br /><br />The French are mere amateurs. The English managed to get from episcopos to bishop.<br /><br />Bingley is from the Jane Austen character of that name. I definitely see myself as the sidekick rather than the romantic lead. ;D

[quote author=Keesa link=board=6;threadid=749;start=0#7425 date=1064959171]<br />Supposedly it means "Loved One," I think from some French/Canadian Indian slang word that Mamma picked up somewhere, some time, long ago. I'm not really sure. <br />[/quote]<br /><br />Do you mean Metis?

Pish-posh Bingley! Episcopus was "Ebiscopus" in Vulgar Latin. Drop the ending and (for some reason) the initial E and you have "biscop", but as you probably know, older forms of English pronounced "sc" as "sh". It is still pretty grim but at least it was LOGICAL (cough cough French... cough cough).

'Raya' is the diminutive of Rayissa, which is my Russian name. Raya is somewhat close to my *official* name (i.e. the one given to me by my parents), which is Arabic and [1] really cannot be rendered in this alphabet [2] for the most part can't be pronounced by anyone who hasn't at least studied Arabic!<br /><br />Call me weird for having many names - some of you noted 'Mao Siao Yue' in my old signature (thanks, mariek, for clarifying exactly how that translates) - but I guess that's me. People collect all kinds of things in their travels - I collect names... ;D

How does it translate? <br /><br />To Klewlis: <br /><br />I am not sure if metis is the right word or not...it very well could be, since I don't know, but I'm not sure how she got from there to here. Still...she is part French...maybe that explains it.

[quote author=benissimus link=board=6;threadid=749;start=0#7401 date=1064941284]<br />I still can't believe French turned "episcopus" into "eveque". I have seen French do some weird stuff to Latin but that is probably the strangest.<br />[/quote]<br /><br />French turned also OFFICINAM into "usine" (plant, factory). But some Italians turned EPIPHANIAM into "Beffana".<br /><br />Episcopu(m) > Episc (the syllabes after the accent fade away)<br /><br />Episc > Evisc (relaxed pronunciation, you don't close your mouth so p > F, and > V due probably to the presence of the surrounding vowels, you don't stop the vibration of your vocal cords);<br /><br />evisc > evesc (also relaxed : you don't reunite your lips tightly enough to say "i", so it becomes "e")<br /><br />evesc > eve:c (the S fades away but the E is lengthened in compensation)<br /><br />Now you write it in the French manner : "évêque" (and you shorten the ê but it remains an open vowel).

[quote author=Keesa link=board=6;threadid=749;start=15#7481 date=1065011605]<br /><br />To Klewlis: <br /><br />I am not sure if metis is the right word or not...it very well could be, since I don't know, but I'm not sure how she got from there to here. :) Still...she is part French...maybe that explains it. ;)<br />[/quote]<br /><br />The Metis are a specific group of Canadians who are half native and half french... it goes way back to settlement days. So when I hear you say native/french/canadian the automatic thought is that you mean Metis ;) Ask your mom... she might know.

[quote author=Clemens link=board=6;threadid=749;start=15#7486 date=1065013801]<br />I thought it was not necessary to search for another name for a Forum dedicated to ancient languages since mine is already a Latin word...boring, I know... ;D<br />[/quote]<br /><br />I had to look that up. Cool!<br /><br />So does this mean you never get angry? ;D<br /><br />

My name's really boring: Emma and then my birth year. Normally I'm known as Emma LB on the Internet. Don’t know why I'm 85 here, maybe Emma LB was already taken? ???<br /><br />Anyway, seems I'm the only one named by their parents after some country singer (Emmy Lou Harris). My dad just had no imagination . At least I'll never have any problems finding mugs with my name on (except in Germany, where it's a really, really rare name).<br /><br />I was going to ask you about your name, Kessa, as it is quite unusual.

[quote author=Emma_85 link=board=6;threadid=749;start=15#7503 date=1065027395]<br />Anyway, seems I'm the only one named by their parents after some country singer (Emmy Lou Harris). My dad just had no imagination . At least I'll never have any problems finding mugs with my name on (except in Germany, where it's a really, really rare name).<br /><br />Emmy Lou Harris is one of my mother's favorite country singers! I don't care for country music, but she's very good. <br /><br />I was going to ask you about your name, Kessa, as it is quite unusual.<br />[/quote]<br /><br />Thank you! I like it. Who knows? Perhaps someday I'll make it famous, and lots of little girls will be named after me. It's not very likely, though, unfortunately. Somehow I can't see myself famous. :-\

[quote author=benissimus link=board=6;threadid=749;start=15#7454 date=1064980931]<br />Pish-posh Bingley! Episcopus was "Ebiscopus" in Vulgar Latin. Drop the ending and (for some reason) the initial E and you have "biscop", but as you probably know, older forms of English pronounced "sc" as "sh". It is still pretty grim but at least it was LOGICAL (cough cough French... cough cough).<br />[/quote]<br /><br />About sc > sh : I believe that at first a little "y" came after the sc (thus first sc > scy and scy > ssh > sh). It happens when you say the "c" with the tonge a little too near to the teeth.<br /><br />Dropping the initial is common practice but curiously NOT in the initial evolution that led from Latin to French : in Gaul, they saved the first syllabe of the words and mainly the stressed one too.